


The Choice

by NightOwl1600



Series: The Fanart Collection [1]
Category: Batman - All Media Types, Nightwing (Comics)
Genre: Angst, Batfamily Feels, Captured Batboys, Gen, Hostage Situation, Hurt No Comfort, Protective Dick Grayson, Protective Jason Todd, Protective Siblings, Talon!Dick, sibling feels
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-03
Updated: 2019-03-06
Packaged: 2019-05-01 16:21:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,781
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14524494
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NightOwl1600/pseuds/NightOwl1600
Summary: Dick Grayson must make a choice; save himself or save his brothers. Its really not that hard.He just wishes he didn't have to break their hearts to do it.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Just something I wrote on a whim. Sorry if any of the characters are OOC.
> 
> Disclaimer: I don't own the characters cause everything belongs to DC.
> 
> Edit: Also, this one doesn't have a fanart I just kinda grouped it in here

“Its your choice, Richard Grayson. Either you come with us, or we take one of them,” the crowd of Court of Owl members watched as Dick struggled to choose between his own freedom, and that of his brothers.

But then again, it really wasn’t that hard of a choice.

“Dick! Don’t do it!” Tim shouted from where his human sized birdcage was hanging next to Jason’s and Damian’s, “Do you really think they’ll let us go? They’ll force us to be talons too anyways!” Tim tried to escape from the offending thing, but his hands were cuffed to the top and his legs to the bottom. 

Tim could be right. Even if Dick did go, there was no guarantee that the Court would really let his brothers go. 

Then suddenly, a talon jumped on to the edge of Jason’s cage and threatened him with a needle to the neck. “You know what this is,” the Talon stated rather than asked.

And of course Dick did, it was the stuff that made a person a Talon, or at least the beginnings of it anyway. Dick knew it was a long painful process, but he also knew that once they inject the serum, there was no going back.

Jason tried to shift away from the point and cursed as the Talon roughly pulled his head. With a merciless tug, the Talon held Jason’s head in place and turned to Dick. “Make a choice, or we make one for you.” Then, the Talon held up the injection, ready to slam it into Jason’s neck.

“Stop! Just let them go!” Dick cried right before the point reached Jason’s skin. “I’ll stay! I’ll be a Talon. Just let them go.” He raised his hands in surrender and withered under the broken-hearted stare of his little brothers.

“We knew you would make the right decision,” the head Owl had said, then gestured at the Talons to restrain Dick. “You will make such a great warrior for the Courts.”

“My brothers. Let. Them. Go. Now.” Dick growled as they tied his arms behind his back. 

“Yes, of course,” the Owl mocked gingerly. “But, we need some sort of insurance, in case you decide to change your mind.” Dick’s stomach turned as blood and adrenaline rushed through his head. He should’ve known it was so simple. “Two go, one stays. Your choice on who’s who.”

His brothers all began their argument and protest on why the other two should go and save themselves. Damian should stay because he “needed to stay by Grayson’s side” (which is Damian language for “I’m trying to keep you all safe and this is the best way I can think of”), Tim should stay because “Batman needed Damian and Jason needed to make sure he got home” (which was Tim language for “I can take the brunt so long as everyone else is okay”), but Jason’s voice had somehow managed to get over the two younger boys and reach Dick’s ears better than any other argument someone could throw.

“Dick,” Jason’s level tone struck him hard, mostly because he was used to Jason being so brash and sarcastic. Not sincere or emotion filled. “Dick, just pick the kids to go. I can stay. I promise I’ll be fine. Let’s get the kids home and safe.” 

If this was any other situation, Dick might have been thrilled that Jason was really stepping up in the older sibling role. But unfortunately, everything in their lives seemed to come at a cost.

He took a deep breath. “Jason stays. Tim and Damian go.” A look of utter betrayal by his youngest two brothers made Dick feel even worse about what decision he had to make. Soon, talons were pulling Damian’s and Tim’s cages down and roughly knocking them out.

“Hey!” Dick shouted in protest, pushing and pulling against the ropes that bound his arms and the talon warriors trying to keep him in place. “You said you’d let them go! Don’t touch them!”

“And we will let them go Mr. Grayson,” the head Owl spoke again. “We must only make sure that they do not attempt to return and free the two of you. I’ll have the talons deposit them on a rooftop in Gotham. Either the Batman will find them, or they can walk home.”

Dick and Jason both stared as their little brothers were lifted and carried out of the room. Dick’s stomach felt like it was falling in on itself. The sirens and red flags were going up in his head, telling him to protect his family, his brothers. Yet, he knew he really couldn’t do anything now. He could only hope that the Court was good on its word. He spared a glance at Jason, who looked angered by the rough treatment of his younger brothers.

“Take the last one away and begin the processes for Mr. Grayson,” the Owl ordered as he began to leave the room. Jason’s cage then fell to the ground and was being dragged out by a few of the Talons.

“Where are you taking him?!” Dick yelled as Jason tried to free himself from the restraints.

“Worry not, Mr. Grayson,” the Owl said, “as long as you cooperate and become a Talon like you were always destined to be, then no harm will come to your…brother.” He said the word “brother” as if it left a bad taste on his tongue.

“You hurt him and I swear I’ll come after you!” Dick shouted. As Jason’s cage was carried, Dick kept eye contact with his brother. Jason looked back at him deviously and defiantly, the rebel spirit obvious through the spark in his eyes. It was as if Jason was telling Dick that he already had a plan and would get them out of this in no time, but knowing Jason, the guy’s only idea of a plan is get out and don’t get caught doing it.

Dick could only hope that his own eyes reflected something of firm confirmation that he would not let his younger brothers get hurt, a sort of promise that he would save them and that they would all be home soon. 

But their lives were never that simple.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fast forward a bit in time—the escape plan is underway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I bet you thought I won't update
> 
> wellllll you were mostly right but then I had a sudden idea and I was like what the heck

It had been nearly a year since Dick had traded his freedom for that of Tim and Damian’s. Jason remembers the horrible night with the Court of Owls, how desperate Dick looked to save them. He could only save two, and Jason was glad he chose Damian and Tim, because in all honesty, he was glad they didn’t see Dick in those last few months they had together. It was…traumatizing. 

The Court had said they needed collateral, something to keep Dick cooperative, thus them keeping Jason captive (something that still hated himself for; for being the reason Dick was…). But as the days went on, and rescue was decisively not on the way, Dick’s condition grew even worse. They were turning him into Talon.

Jason wasn’t sure what exactly happened, but Dick would come back to the cell usually showing bruising from some kind of training, or injection marks from the drugs turning him into one of them. Jason hated it, he tried to fight them when they came to take Dick away again and again, but every time, there was just too many to fight off. 

Jason had spent months crafting their escape plan before they could take Dick entirely. The longer he waited, the more and more Dick stopped acting like himself. He started closing Jason off, starting disappearing into his own head a little too much. Jason tried so hard to remind him of who he was, and Dick had lasted a long time surviving with just Jason to remind, but months of torture and brainwashing was taking its toll.

Jason had decided to enact his escape plan as soon as possible. 

The moment he saw the opening, between them bringing him and Dick food in the morning, was when he pounced the guards and took them down. He grabbed Dick’s arm and the two ran. Jason wasn’t even sure where he was going, but he’d figured he’d find his way.

And he did.

The exit was there. Just at the end of a very long hallway.

And that was when they came. Talons. Dozens of them, coming down the hallway straight towards the two. Jason tried to run, but stopped when he realized Dick wasn’t following him. 

“Dick! We have to go now!”

But Dick just stood there, starring down the hall, as the Talons were making their way towards them.

“Dick?”

“We won’t make it.” Dick paused, getting into a fighting stance. “Even if we get out of here we won’t make it. But they’re after me not you.”

“You can’t be serious right now.” Jason growled furiously. This was no time to play the selfless martyr.

“Jason,” Dick leveled with him, “They’ll catch us, they’ll kill you for trying to escape, but they won’t kill me. They’ve spent too much on me. You need to leave.” The Talons were taking their time to get to them. They were just walking, as if to mock that the two could never really escape even if they got out.

“No, Dickface!” Jason countered, standing by Dick getting ready to fight for his life, for his brother’s life. 

“Jason please. I can’t take that guilt, knowing that you died because of me.” The Talons were getting closer. “Please take care of everyone for me.”

“I said I wasn’t leaving without you.”

“I can’t leave Jason.”

“Then I guess I’m staying.”

Dick turned to Jason. “Jay, I can’t leave. I’ve done things here that I’m never going to live down. I can’t go back, I’m too far gone already. We’ll never outrun them, but if I stay, if I try to fight them off, you have a chance.”

“I already told you my answer.” Jason said through his teeth. The tension in the room was rising as the Talons realized Jason would not back off without a fight. He turned to them and shouted, “What are you waiting for Talons? An invitation for me to kick your ass?”

At the sound of the challenge, the Talons began sprinting towards them, closing the gap in mere seconds. But before the Talons could get close enough Dick kicked Jason in the torso and sent him flying out the door.

Before it could close, Dick took a second to look at Jason, and memorize the face he knew he would probably never see again. Jason on the other, could only look in horror as the Talons were gathered behind Dick, but they weren’t trying to attack him, they were just standing there, waiting for Dick to close the door.

“Take care of them for me, Little Wing.”

With that, Dick closed the door via a lever on the inside. A stone slab slid between Jason and Dick, and Jason was left on the outside of…a tomb?

God, the entrance to their lair was a damn tomb in the middle of some old cemetery.

This would have been twice now that he’d crawled out of a grave, but this time, the price may have been too high.

Jason got up and tried to pry the door open, but it wouldn’t budge. He assumed that the door would only open if someone on the inside would open it first. Obviously he wasn’t getting in that way.

He had spent a good day trying to look for another way into the cave system under the graveyard. He didn’t care if the Talons came to end him, he couldn’t just leave Dick; not after what he’d seen.

Dick was broken. Jason never thought it possible, but they made Dick believe that he belonged with them, that he didn’t deserve the life and the love he had. But even then, Dick was still Dick, he still cared, still selfless, still trying to be the hero in those last moments. 

But perhaps the worst part was that it felt too planned, as if the Court had wanted him to escape, if only to get him out of the picture. They couldn’t kill him, they had promised Dick he would remain safe if he cooperated. So letting him go seemed to be their only course of action. But to Jason, it was obviously what they had planned from the start. They needed Dick to let go voluntarily; to let go of his life, his family, his friends—and the only thing they needed to solidify that was Dick finally letting go of Jason. It was clear in the way the Talons simply walked with ease, how they didn’t try to contain Dick when they had caught up with them. They knew what he would choose. They had been planning it since the beginning. 

And Jason would be damned if Dick really thought he would leave him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for waiting. Hope you enjoyed. As always, tips, comments, and constructive criticism is always welcomed


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wha-what's this? Another chapter? Seemingly out of nowhere? haha, tis true my friends.  
> ok but also its short and opens up the plot a lot. Will I probably be adding chapters inbetween or doing a hell lot of flashbacks? maybe? probably. This is just a creative dump for me that will hopefully also one day become a good story but thats going to take a lot of work.
> 
> Thanks for staying tuned!

When Jason realized he wasn’t going to be able to save Dick alone, and made his way to the nearest town and phoned in Bruce.

 

Jason had to call three times before someone had finally answered the phone.

 

“Hello?” Jason asked. “Bruce?” There was a pause on the other end of the line. “Hello?”

 

“Todd?” a small, yet very familiar voice answered back.

 

“Damian.” Jason said surely. “I’m glad you’re alright, kid.” It had been months since he’d seen Damian. The last memory he had of the kid was him being dragged out by Talons. He was worried they had just killed him.

 

“We’ve been searching everywhere for you and Grayson. We thought you were dead. Where are you two?”

 

Jason cringed at that. Damian thought Dick was with him. “Some random place in the middle of Nowhere, France. Track my coordinates, I need backup yesterday. Where’s Bruce? I need to talk to him.” Jason didn’t want to tell Damian that his favorite brother was currently still in the hands of the enemy.

 

“Father has not been well. None of us have. Not since the incident with the Court. He hasn’t been…he’s locked everyone out. Everyone, Todd. Me, Pennyworth, the Batgirls, the Justice League, Kent. He won’t even let me into the Batcave.”

 

“Damian, what happened?” Jason asked. For that to happen, something would have had to have gone massively wrong.

 

“Aside from you and Grayson being missing for nine months?”

 

“Nine months?!”

 

“You didn’t know?”

 

Jason huffed in frustration. “Kinda hard to tell when there’s no way to keep time. I thought it was maybe five or six. No wonder you thought we were dead. But we’re mostly alright now. Just tell Bruce to get his act together and get over here with the rest of the team quick.” Jason demanded. The more time they wasted waiting, the less of a chance they had at saving Dick.

 

“It’s not just that,” Damian responded. Jason heart dropped. Something else had happened while he and Dick were missing. “Do you know what happened to us after the Court took Drake and I away?” Jason did not. He assumed they were safe, they promised they wouldn’t hurt them. “They let us go, but they also tipped off my grandfather as to where they were dropping us off.”

 

It made sense, Jason thought to himself. The Court was very good with tying up loose ends.

 

“Todd,” Damian spoke again, very calmly. “Tim, he—he took a lot of damage under grandfather’s imprisonment. He’s on life support right now.”

 

Jason’s whole world was on fire. Tim and Damian were not saved that night, and Tim was in danger of losing his life now, and Dick was still in the hands of the Court, and Damian…if Ra’s had hurt Tim so badly, it was safe to assume…

 

“Damian, what did he do? To both of you?” Jason questioned, anger and hate and frustration boiling inside him. He didn’t know what he would do when he found out, but someone was definitely getting shot in the knees.

 

“We’ll deal with it later Todd. I’m fine, Tim is…going to be fine,” Damian hesitated. Jason hated that Damian was unsure, it was completely the opposite of his character. “Why do you need back up? Where’s Grayson?”

 

Damian must had realized something was off from the moment he answered the phone. Briefly blinded by joy in the beginning, the boy had now had the time to reflect on the strange way Jason was walking around the subject. How was Jason supposed to explain that to the kid?

 

“Dick’s not here. He’s in trouble, get the Batgirls, maybe the Titans too. I can’t explain now, but just do that for me. Please Damian.”

 

“They still have him don’t they?”

 

Jason didn’t answer.

 

“He sacrificed himself to try and save you?”

 

Jason _couldn’t_ answer.

 

“Imbecile.”

 

“He is,” Jason agreed. “But we’re going to get our imbecile back.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bringing it back to when Damian and Tim first returned home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nothing is in order and everything is terrible. What have I created?  
> This is basically just a collection of random thoughts that have the possibility of being a really good story if I actually put in the time to reorganize and come up with a plot, but for now have more random story plot.  
> BUT at least I updated...?

 

It had been months since Bruce last saw Jason and Dick.

 

It had been 7 months, to be exact, when he first found out that the two, along with Tim and Damian, had gone missing. 5 months since he went on a ruthless, grief-induced craze in which he beat up any villain, or anyone, who he suspected as kidnapping his family. 4 months since Cass and Duke halted their global search for the boys and staged an intervention for Bruce, then decided to stay in Gotham with him. 3 months since he found Tim and Damian, alive, but severely injured, in the prison of Ra’s Al Ghul. 2 months and a week since Bruce was finally able to bring them home, in comas, but at least back in Gotham. 2 weeks since the doctors had told him it didn’t look like either of the boys would make it. 3 days since the doctors advised taking Tim off life support. And 15 seconds since he punched a hole in the hospital wall.

 

He had been keeping Tim on life support for the past 4 days, but he showed no signs of getting better. In fact, he was only getting worse. Bruce had been able to stave off the doctors’ advise for the last 2 days, saying that his son was stronger than he looked, that he would surprise them, that he was a fighter, that he would beat whatever it was that was keeping him under, that Bruce couldn’t let him go because he had lost enough already and he can’t lose Tim too.

 

He didn’t know if he’d be able to handle that.

 

Bruce was holding on to that slim hope that Tim would pull through, but as the minutes ticked on, that chance was growing smaller and smaller.

 

Family and friends started piling into the hospital to say their good byes. Bruce had made use of ever contact he had that he thought might help find Dick and Jason or save Tim and Damian, but there was nothing anyone could do.

 

The first people to come in were Duke and Cass. During the time the boys went missing, the two were on mission in France to help Duke learn about other heroes outside of the United States, specifically Bat-inc heroes. Had they been in Gotham at the time, Bruce had no doubt that they would have been missing too.

 

Cass and Duke entered Tim’s room and pulled some chairs next to Bruce. They looked sadly at Tim.

 

Duke put a hand on his shoulder. “Bruce...” he started, but Bruce could hear the lump in Duke’s throat. Duke tried his best to comfort the man, but really, it should have been Bruce that was trying to comfort him. He was about to lose someone too.

 

He couldn’t. Bruce didn’t want to hear his kids saying their goodbyes. “I’ll let you have some time alone with him.” He said as he exited the room.

 

He heard Duke calling for him to come back, and Cass just telling Duke to let him leave. Bruce decided just to sit on one of the benches outside the room and greet anyone else that was coming.

 

Several of Tim’s friends came to see him one last time. Among them were Lucius Fox, Tam Fox, Cassie Sandsmark, Bart Allen, Garfield Logan, Commissioner Gordon, Barbra, and many others. Each gave the grieving father their support, but it would never really fix what was happening. Bruce wondered why Tim had always felt so unwanted when so many people obviously loved him. Did Tim know how many people loved him? Does he know that Bruce loves him?

 

Clark entered with his hands on a grieving Conner. Bruce knew how close their two boys were. Conner had always been there when Tim needed him. When Tim had gone missing, Conner helped look everywhere he could. It was too bad all that searching just amounted to nothing anyway.

 

Clark put a hand on Bruce’s shoulder, to signify that he would be there for his friend in his time of need. Bruce appreciated that. As the two passed by, Bruce couldn’t quite meet Conner’s eyes, because he knew all he would really see reflected back is the failure to save Tim.

 

With them already inside, there were only two more people Bruce was waiting on, and perhaps the most grief-filled of all the guests that had come. In honesty, Bruce didn’t even want to face them, too afraid to see the sadness.

 

Just as the thought passed through his mind, Bruce heard the last two visitors come down the hallway. Alfred walked in solemnly, guiding a teary Stephanie Brown towards Tim’s room. Then suddenly, the reality of losing Tim became all too real. Alfred, the rock of the family, the one that got them through everything, still remained as composed as he could, but there were tears in his eyes, and his hands were shaking.

 

But that wasn’t even the worst part.

 

The worst was Steph. Bruce couldn’t bear to face her. He’d failed Tim. He’d failed her, and now she was going to lose her…well, Bruce wasn’t too sure if they were still a couple, but the tears coming down her face, the sobs that choked out her voice, would suggest there was something very special in their relationship.

 

Bruce didn’t even look up as they past him. He couldn’t.

 

He could hear the group inside the room crying, whispering, and saying words of comfort to each other and to Tim. It was hard to listen to, but Bruce was glad he was outside rather than inside with all of them. He didn’t want to accept it was happening.

 

After that, each person in the room got to have their own personal time with Tim. Bruce guessed it would take another hour or so for that to be finished, so he decided to go to Damian’s room.

 

Damian wasn’t doing too well either, but he hadn’t been put on life support yet, so there was still hope. However, Bruce didn’t know how the boy would feel waking up and realizing that Tim died while he was out. Or that Bruce still hadn’t found Jason and Dick. Or all the horrible things that Bruce had done to the rogues before Cass and Duke had stopped him.

 

Bruce shuddered at how his life had turned completely upside-down, but at the moment, he had a more important task at hand. He needed to tell Damian about Tim, even if Damian was still in comatose. At least it’d feel like preparing Damian for waking up to this nightmare that was now their lives.

 

“Damian,” Bruce started slowly, sitting beside the bed, “I don’t know how to explain this to you, or how I’m going to do it again when you wake up.” _If you wake up_ , a dark part of his mind thought. “But, Tim,” he paused and took a deep, shaky breath. “Tim is dying. He isn’t going to make it through so we have to take him off life support.”

 

Bruce felt like he was betraying Tim. He felt like he was giving up on Tim, but it was the truth, and Damian deserved to hear it. Bruce needed to tell him.

 

“We tried everything Damian, but he was so injured when we found the two of you. They were surprised that he was still alive to begin with. We tried to keep him in the cave or at Leslie’s, but we still didn’t have the equipment or expertise to deal with it. So we brought both of you to the hospital, but it seems that it still wasn’t enough.”

 

“Damian, please believe me, I tried everything. I kept him on life support for as long as I could, but its been days since he was put on. They say there’s nothing that can be done. He won’t wake up and I can’t keep him. I-I can’t keep him if he doesn’t want to be here anymore.”

 

Bruce hid his face in his hands. Even if Damian wasn’t conscious to see him so downdraught, Bruce still felt every ounce of shame. He failed, and that was that. He wished he could back in time, before he ever met Tim, to stop himself from setting Tim on a path to his death.

 

Bruce tried to focus on something else, anything really, to give him some kind quick relief from his nightmare, so he focused on Damian. If he couldn’t save Tim, then he was going to do his damn best to save Damian. It was obvious, from the larger amount of injuries on Tim, that Tim was trying to take the brunt of their imprisonment. If Tim gave his life to save Damian, then Damian had to live.

 

Bruce studied Damian’s little form; the tan-ness of his skin, the way his little hand twitched ever so often, the way his dark hair just barely covered his green eyes.

 

His _open,_ green eyes.

 

Wait a minute.

 

Bruce forced himself back into reality, only to realize Damian was awake and starring at him, trying to speak but not being able to with a tube in his mouth.

 

“Damian,” Bruce breathed with relief, then quickly got into action by calling the doctor and calming Damian down. “Damian, hang on son. Just give us a minute to get the tube out.”

 

As they waited for the doctors to come, Damian’s heart race increased. He distressingly grabbed Bruce’s arm, trying to get his father’s attention. But for the love of God, Bruce couldn’t figure out what Damian was trying to tell him.

 

“Damian, please calm down,” Bruce soothed as he knelt down to his son’s level. “Everything is going to be alright, they’re coming to unhook you and get you checked.”

 

Damian shook his head (or tried to with a tube in it). He seemed certain that everything was not going to be alright.

 

That was when Bruce realized what Damian was trying to tell him.

 

Speaking loud enough so Damian could hear him, “Doctor,” Bruce said, “We are not taking Tim off life support yet. I need to deal with these things one at a time and Damian needs the attention now. We can deal with Tim later.”

 

The doctor just nodded, told the nurse to hold on taking Tim off life support, and then moved Bruce aside so he could help Damian. If the doctor wasn’t trying to help his son, Bruce would have been annoyed at such a dismissal. When Damian saw the doctor acknowledge that, he immediately calmed down, let the doctor and nurses do as they needed, and let go of Bruce’s arm

 

Bruce took a deep breath as he exited the room and ran straight into Alfred and Cass.

 

“What happened?” Alfred questioned, still teary eyed, “We heard something was going on in Damian’s room and were informed that Tim is going to stay on life support for a while longer.”

 

“Damian woke up,” Bruce answered, the relief and joy obvious in both his voice and his movements. Drawing his own quick conclusions, he added “He woke up to stop us from taking Tim off life support.”

 

The fact that Bruce was just telling Damian about it, and that Damian’s first reaction was to get Bruce’s attention and stop them from taking Tim off life support— it seemed too coincidental to not be true.

 

Maybe it was just a coincidence, or maybe it wasn’t. But one thing is for sure, Damian’s miraculous awakening just bought Tim more time. And if Damian could wake up—if he could wake up to save Tim—then Bruce was absolutely not going to give up on either of them.

 

Or give up on any of them for that matter of fact.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally, one chapter where it ends somewhat hopeful

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you liked it! Constructive criticism would be appreciated (like if you want). If anyone wants a bigger story arc on this, leave a comment!


End file.
